Morning:
10°c
It's close to midnight, and something evil's lurking in the dark. No, not the prospect of a Michael Jackson gig, but an occasion almost as huge: the return of the power shoulder. Be afraid. Be very afraid.
"Thriller fashion" has been all over the catwalks at Paris Fashion Week. Who knew that the oft-ridiculed Michael Jackson would ever serve as such a big inspiration for Paris's hippest designers?
Those Balmain jackets with military frogging and shoulders so square they look like the coat hanger is still inside them? Straight out of Jackson's 1980's tour wardrobe - and now yours for a mere £2,000.
Balmain's creative director, Christophe Decarnin, is one of the most copied designers of the moment. The venerable old fashion house was languishing in obscurity until he took over the helm in 2005.
Now, his signature aesthetic - skinny trousers, sequined vest and cropped jacket with big power shoulders - has been adopted as a sort of uniform, not only by half the chic young staff at French Vogue, but by other designers anxious to cash in on women's evident desire to look like tousle-haired Eighties rock chicks.
While "rock chick" wasn't the only trend thrown up at Paris fashion week, it was certainly one of the most pervasive - and persuasive.
At Antonio Berardi, the power shoulder reared its head again, with crystal-studded mini dresses worn with a helping of sexy suede thigh boots - very Joan Jett and the Blackhearts.
At Sophia Kokosalaki, black leggings studded with metal rivets were joined with a power-shouldered black jacket to give a look that can best be described as "groupie with Mötley Crüe".
And at Jean Paul Gaultier, a black studded leather jacket was the spit of the one worn by Michael Jackson on the cover of Bad.
Instead of donning his dust mask and getting on the treadmill in preparation for those gruelling weeks ahead, perhaps the debt-ridden star should save himself the bother of all those tour dates at the O2 and start charging royalties to the designers who are stealing his look.
On second thoughts, perhaps not. We wanna see the moondance again! And we know just what to wear when we watch it.
